Masquerade
by glyphsbowtie
Summary: In which Rey is rescued by a stranger at a masquerade ball. Except it isn't a ball, it's a themed night at a college bar. And he isn't a stranger. Not really.


Note: My work for the Reylo Valentines fic exchange on Tumblr, for Mster70.

* * *

It started on a Tuesday night.

Actually, it might have been very, very early on Wednesday morning.

Rey was sweaty and hot, and she had drank one too many sugary drinks. The crowded student bar was a pleasant blur around her as she danced. It was masquerade night, which for most students meant a cheap one dollar cardboard mask that covered their eyes, and copious amounts of vodka Red Bulls.

She was laughing at her friends, Poe and Finn, who had come in matching Zorro outfits. Poe's black shirt was unbuttoned to reveal his muscled chest, and he was shaking his hips with some enthusiasm in the direction of Finn, who was shuffling awkwardly next to him in time to the Scissor Sisters.

Rey felt large hands encircle her waist and she turned sharply to look at the culprit. It was a tall, red haired boy she recognised from her creative writing class. He was wearing a green cardboard mask over his eyes which matched the tone of his shirt.

She shook her head at him, trying to disengage her waist from his insistent, freckled hands.

"Let me buy you a drink!" he shouted over the music.

She wriggled away from him. "No, thank you."

He frowned, and she saw something nasty in his eyes, something which made her turn and leave the dancefloor, pushing through the gyrating throng of people towards the relative quiet of the bathroom.

She ran the tap and splashed some cold water onto her face, looking at her reflection in the greasy mirror. She was wearing a vest and jeans, hair twisted into a knot at the base of her neck. Her mask was white and gold, hand-painted by Poe, who had desperately wanted to dress her up further. She remembered laughing at him, but now she wished she had allowed him to. The girl looking back at her looked plain.

As she left the bathroom, she was still feeling a little self-conscious, so when she walked back into the boy from creative writing, she didn't realise who it was until he wrapped his hands around her again.

"Hello, beautiful," he purred.

She punched him, taking him cleanly to the floor. His nose exploded, blood looking almost black beneath the pulsating lights. He glared up at her, livid, and she tensed for his reaction.

"We're just leaving," said a different voice, one which deep and clear despite the loud music. Rey didn't have time to hesitate as gloved fingers gently caught her around her shoulders and steered her away from the boy she had punched.

Before she knew what was happening, they were outside; they had come out of a side door, into a quiet and pleasantly cool yard.

She looked up at the man who had saved her and laughed awkwardly. He had really taken the masquerade theme to heart- he was robed in black, his face covered with a complicated and heavy-looking black and silver mask which completely hid his identity. It should have been ridiculous, but there was something appealing about him. Perhaps it was the sheer size of him- he was impossibly tall, and broad.

"I apologise for manhandling you," he said softly. "I simply thought it best to steer you out of there before you got into any trouble."

She smiled at the endearingly archaic way he spoke. "It's fine- I probably shouldn't have hit him, but…"

"He deserved it. Truthfully, I saw him put his hands on you before, and considered intervening then. I had no idea you had such a good punch."

"Do we know each other?" she asked, staring up at him.

"We know of each other, I suppose." He cocked his head. "It's Rey, isn't it?"

"Yes. Who are you?"

She expected him to lift his mask, but he didn't. He gave a surprisingly smoky chuckle that made the hairs on her arms prickle.

"Close your eyes, Rey," he said.

She laughed- surely he wasn't serious? But he was. Her heart was racing as she allowed her eyes to flutter closed. For a moment, nothing happened, and she felt ridiculous standing with her eyes closed. Then she heard the heavy clicks of his mask being removed. He leaned close. He smelled spicy.

His mouth was hot against her ear. "Don't open your eyes."

Soft hair tickled her cheek. "I won't."

He kissed her.

She had been kissed before, of course, but never like this. It wasn't clumsy or awkward. It was soft, gentle, achingly nice. His lips were warm, and his breath tasted faintly of mint and cinnamon. Those gloved fingers curled around the base of her neck, making her shiver.

As his tongue slid over her bottom lip, she whimpered, and fought the urge to open her eyes.

Finally, he drew back, and she heard him placing the mask back on.

She opened her eyes and stared at the mask. Her breathing was shallow, her body trembling with desire. That had been the most perfect kiss of her life.

"Who are you?" she asked.

The door burst open. Poe and Finn appeared in the doorway, both grinning maniacally. They weren't aware of what they had interrupted.

"Rey- there you are! Hey, who are you?" Poe said loudly, but not unkindly.

The stranger nodded politely at Poe before looking back at Rey. "Goodnight, Rey," he said gently, turning away and heading back inside.

Rey stared after him, fighting the urge to shout something stupid at his broad, retreating back. Instead she watched him go.

"Rey, what's the matter?" Finn asked. "You look weird."

"Thanks, guys," she muttered.

* * *

The next day in creative writing, the red-haired boy glared at her from across the lecture theater, but didn't approach her.

She was exhausted and confused. She usually found creative writing interesting, but she could barely follow the lecture today. Professor Skywalker was rubbing his beard and telling them about something to do with plot climaxes, but it was just background noise to her.

Poe and Finn had both declared themselves too hungover for class today, so she had sat down in the first spare chair she had found when she stumbled in a couple of minutes late. The guy next to her was taking immaculate notes in neat handwriting. She was trying to do the same, but she was doodling in her margin.

"Hey, nice sketches," whispered her neighbour.

She blushed as she realised she had been drawing the mask of the boy who had kissed her last night. "Thanks," she mumbled awkwardly, not looking up at him.

He reached over with long white fingers and tugged her notebook towards him for a closer look. He was wearing a soft-looking black sweater.

"What's this meant to be?" he whispered. He sounded almost… amused?

She looked up at his face, anger flaring easily today. She had seen him in here before. He had a narrow, pale face, big dark eyes and long thick hair which was currently framing his sharp features.

"I'm trying to listen to the lecture," she hissed back, tugging her notebook away from him.

He laughed then, softly, smokily, and she froze. As he leaned closer, she breathed in a familiar scent. "It's Rey, isn't it?" he asked quietly.

The lecture was finishing, students standing up around them. Rey found herself staring at him, a feeling she couldn't name clenching in her gut.

He stood up and took her hand without asking, pulling her gently to her feet. He was so impossibly tall. Standing next to him, she was surprised she had never really given this man any attention before.

"It's you," she said, feeling foolish. Her fingers were still curled in his large hand.

"My name is Ben," he said. "You aren't disappointed, are you?"

"That it's you?" she asked.

They were the only ones left in the room, apart from Professor Skywalker. They both became aware of his gaze at the same time, and looked at him.

He was standing with his arms folded, wearing a small smile. They both laughed awkwardly and grabbed their bags, heading from the room.

They were still holding hands when they emerged in the crisp sunlight outside. They walked along in companionable silence. She didn't know where they were going, and it didn't matter.

"I'm not disappointed," she told him.

He stopped then, pulling her to him and kissing her again. She kept her eyes open this time.


End file.
